Review: Crash & Burn by Lisa Gardner

The #1 New York Times bestselling author’s latest stand-alone thriller, with a cameo by her fan-favorite character, Boston Detective D.D. Warren

My name is Nicky Frank. Except, most likely, it isn’t.

Nicole Frank shouldn’t have been able to survive the car accident, much
less crawl up the steep ravine. Not in the dark, not in the rain, not
with her injuries. But one thought allows her to defy the odds and flag
down help: Vero.

I’m looking for a little girl. I have to save her. Except, most likely, she doesn’t exist.

Sergeant Wyatt Foster is frustrated when even the search dogs can’t
find any trace of the mysterious missing child. Until Nicky’s husband,
Thomas, arrives with a host of shattering revelations: Nicole Frank
suffers from a rare brain injury and the police shouldn’t trust anything
she says.

Who is Nicky Frank, and what happened the night her car sailed off the
road? Was it a random accident or something more sinister given the
woman’s lack of family and no close friends? The deeper Wyatt digs, the
more concerned he becomes. Because it turns out, in the past few months,
Nicky has suffered from more than one close accident. . . . In fact, it
would appear someone very much wants her dead.

This is my life. Except, most likely, it’s not. Now watch me crash and burn.

My
Thoughts:

Crash & Burn
was another riveting mystery from Lisa Gardner!As with most of her stories, I was glued to the pages as Nicky and
Thomas’ mystery unraveled.

We’re thrown into Nicky’s story as she’s crawling from a
wreck, bloody and injured, soaked in whiskey and screaming for a child, Vero. Who is Vero? Where is she? These are questions
that Nicky can’t even answer herself since she’s suffered three traumatic brain
injuries within the last six months; the car crash, and two other separate home
accidents. As we learn more about Vero, it’s apparent there are many secrets
hidden in Nicky’s tangled and confused mind. Sergeant Wyatt Foster is determined to
untangle this web of confusion before Nicky has another “accident”.

Thomas, Nicky’s husband of twenty-two years seemed devoted
and protective, but also tired and resigned.He’s definitely hiding something and knows more that he’s willing to
share. I was suspicious of Thomas, but at the same time I desperately hoped he
had nothing to do with Nicky’s accidents. He truly seemed to love and care for
Nicky.

“I dreamed the first time I saw you,” he murmurs, his voice low and
husky. “I spotted you, across the proverbial crowded room. You weren’t looking
at me at all. But I saw you and I…I felt I’d waited my whole life just for that
moment. To find you. You consumed me, Nicky. You still do.”

Even though Nicky’s
mind would warn her against him, her body and heart drew her to him. But still,
things did not add up. Fractured and terrifying memories keep coming, revealing
more and more, and Nicky wants answers, but those will certainly come at a
price.

“Just remember,” he says, as he moves me away from him. “The problem
with asking questions is that you can’t control all the answers.”

Tessa is a clever and confident investigator, but a “lone
wolf” as D.D. Warren likes to call her. I think that has started to change,
especially since her relationship with Wyatt. She no longer has to shoulder
things on her own. Wyatt is well suited for Tessa, with their backgrounds in
law enforcement they have a lot in common.I liked the support they gave each other both on the job and off. D.D. Warren
is part of this story, and I suspect she may become more important to Tessa in
the coming stories, as well. Having this support will probably become vital to
Tessa, especially since her past is posing a possible problem now… I must say,
I’m a little worried.

The future is unreliable, and three years later, the past can still
come back to haunt you.

Crash & Burn is the third book in the Tessa Leoni series, and can be
read as a stand-alone and still enjoy it. The story is centered mainly on Nicky
and Thomas, Tessa and Wyatt’s current case, but you’d miss Tessa’s past, what’s
formed her character, and that would be unfortunate. Tessa has many layers, and
when I first “met” her in Love
You More, I was impressed by her cool and calm thinking under extreme
pressure. Wyatt also gets a POV and I enjoyed having his side of things.

Lisa Gardner writes mysteries that will keep you thinking
about them long after you’ve read the last page.Disturbing, compelling, and addictive.

9 comments:

Gosh, I haven't read a mystery book in years! This sounds pretty intense though and I like books with memory loss themes in it so I think I would enjoy this. I'm glad this series is going strong for you, Rachel. Great review!

Wow, I read that synopsis, and I was really blown away. After reading your review, Rachel, it definitely seems like I need to pick this one up! The mystery in this novel sounds AWESOME: completely unpredictable and really suspensful. You've got me really suspicious about this Thomas person! Based on the quotes you shared, he seems like a great guy, but if he has something to hide... I'm definitely interested to see the plot twist behind his character.

Overall, this one sounds like a phenomenal book! I'll have to pick this series up soon. <3

I really need to have my fix of adult mystery. The last time it were James Patterson, but I've moved on from him now and his ghost writers, and I really should give Lisa Gardner a try. I think I have one of her older books here (hardback, signed, that I bought in a garage sale just for kicks). I'll give that one a try!!

First off, I love the title of this one! Reminds of Jesse McCartney's song Crash and Burn that I loved as a teenager. Anyway... This sounds nice, althought not really something I would read. I'm glad you liked the book, Rachel. Nice review!